Torvallis!'s Alchemy Training

[Malva]

[Sunday afternoon after game]

Malva comes up to Torvallis! in the inn. "Do you want your training now? Sorry I couldn't get to you yesterday."

[Torvallis!]

"Yes, that would be fantastic! Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but I think what would help me most at this point is learning more about the theory of alchemical recipes . . .

Is it possible, by looking at a recipe without knowing what it produces, to have an idea of what it does?"

[Malva]

"Well that is certainly possible to do, but that is a matter of familiarity with recipes rather than your actual skill level as an alchemist. I personally think it would benefit you more now to learn techniques in dissecting potions."

[Torvallis!]

"Ah! You're right, I've yet to rend potions!

I have to admit, it's always been a mystery to me as to how one learns what's in potions.

It seems to me that if you're familiar enough with plants and ingredients to tell them apart in a potion, then you should be familiar enough to know what they do?

Is there a master list of herbs and ores somewhere that I neglected in my alchemy training thus far?"

[Malva]

"No."

[Torvallis!]

"I see, I see . . .

Alright, I guess I'm done asking stupid questions.

Lead the way, Master"

[Malva]

"Right so in order to rend a potion you usually needs to separate it down into its basic ingredients, although there are some tests you can run without doing that, such as adding indicators for pH and other properties."

[Torvallis!]

"Indicators for whatnow?"

[Malva]

"There are certain chemicals that you can add and they'll change color depending on how acidic or basic the potion is. I often use one that I derive from lichen that changes between red and blue."

[Torvallis!]

"I see, I see.

Ummm . . . acid is like lemon juice right? And basic is like Morpha?"

[Malva]

"I-um.. lemon juice is acidic, I'm not sure about Morpha... soap is basic, how about that?"

[Torvallis!]

"Alright, so sour or soapy. And that tells us whether we have, in balance, sour or soapy ingredients?"

[Malva]

"Well it's not always going to be in balance; caustic tar is quite acidic, for example.

If you have an acidic potion, you have to ask yourself how it got that way: Is it a single acidic ingredient? Or was the acid produced as part of a reaction? It's just one piece of the puzzle to be considered with any of your other tests."

[Torvallis!]

"Not that kind of balance, the balance between the ingredients. What you said.", Torvallis! looks mildly frustrated at their inability to put words to what they mean.

"Anyways, what other tests?"

[Malva]

"Well you can try to separate it down to its base ingredients by sieving, boiling, separation by weight or what have you, or you can continue to test its reactions with various chemicals."

[Torvallis!]

"So, am I mostly looking for deviations from the expected, hoping that one or multiple of them will be characteristic of some recognizable substance?"

[Malva]

"Well if you know that substances A and B will react with substance Y, and that substances B and C will react with substance Z, then if something reacts with substances Y and Z it must be substance B"

[Torvallis!]

"Mmm, and then because I am familiar with substance B, I can guess what effect it must have on the mixture, and factor that out. Or, if I'm lucky, just straight-up remove substance B and study the remaining potion"

[Malva]

"Yes! The key is understanding lots of tests you can run and being able to execute as many as them as possible without running out of sample!"

[Torvallis!]

"That makes sense . . .

So first of all, non-destructive tests are great and I should always do them.

Second, I want to prioritize my tests, so I should have an initial bank, and then proceed on other tests as I get ideas about what it might be.

Third, I want to figure out how to do destructive tests with as little sample as possible. I guess you have some tips and tricks of the trade on that?"

[Malva]

"For that, you really just want to have precise equipment; the smaller the units of measurement you can work with reliably, the smaller amounts of sample you can use."

[Torvallis!]

Torvallis! sighs.

"More equipment to have in good working order.

So I guess work with a lot of dilutions and very precise reactions?"

[Malva]

"Yes, that certainly helps."

[Torvallis!]

"Alright, so what's next?"

[Malva]

"Well, that's everything I had in mind."

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